I like the Yarn Diet proposal outlined in this post ... I've been doing a lot of small gift knitting out of my stash in the past week or so, and it makes me feel good to use up yarn that I've had sitting around. Of course, I've been trying to think of ways to do it for a while -- the trouble for me is usually that I don't have enough of a specific type of yarn (even counting different colors) to make a specific project that will actually get worn or used. That's what I get for buying so much crappy, cheap yarn at the beginning of my knitting sojourn, though. ;) (But I've thought of a way to use up all the acrylic stuff, too: Warm Up America requires that you use worsted weight acrylic yarn to knit the squares for their afghans.) I still have a lot more cheap yarn than decent yarn that's easy to stashbust with, but this year I may actually have a New Year's resolution ... not so much a yarn diet as a yarn exercise program ;) -- since I still intend on acquiring good yarn for my stash, while using up some of the stuff that's been sitting around.
So, my yarn exercise program proposal:
Silver's Great Yarn Exercise Program, 2007!
Purposes:
*to reduce current yarn stash,
*to finish more projects,
*to try new patterns,
*to knit gifts before the last minute (and to have knit items set aside for unexpected gift-giving), and
*to knit original patterns, potentially to sell (either the patterns or the items made from them).
Guidelines:
1. Time period of exercise program to be determined. (Preliminary estimate of program duration: 6 months?)
2. Dietary requirements: I will finish at least two UFOs before the end of the exercise program. Also, I will finish at least four Warm Up America afghan squares.
3. Yarn purchases will be limited to: sale/clearance yarn (preferably of at least 40% off), KnitPicks (and other cheap-but-not-crappy) yarn, and yarn for specific projects I don't have the yarn for. New yarn purchases should preferably be used within two months of being acquired.
4. New projects begun should fall into one of these categories: a) gifts for someone else, b) items to sell, c) projects being developed by me, or d) projects I really, really like. I will not buy new yarn for a project about which I feel only mediocre. At least one new project started during the exercise program will be for me and not a gift.
As in the original Knit From Your Stash guidelines, yarn gifts are permissible and encouraged, and spinning fiber does not in any way count as a yarn purchase.
...though if I were going to be a really good girl, I might set guidelines for spinning fiber stash reduction in the coming year. ;) Except that I've been very Spinning Mind recently and that may not be a problem. :D
